What is the Aral Sea?
Q: What is the Aral Sea?
A: The Aral Sea was a lake located in Central Asia between Kazakhstan and Karakalpakstan, an autonomous region of Uzbekistan.
Q: What caused the Aral Sea to shrink since the 1960s?
A: The rivers that fed it (the Amu Darya and the Syr Darya) were used by the Soviet Union for irrigating cotton production, which caused it to shrink.
Q: Is what remains of the Aral Sea heavily polluted?
A: Yes, what is left of the Aral Sea is heavily polluted, largely as a result of weapons testing, industrial projects, and fertilizer runoff before and after the breakup of the Soviet Union.
Q: Is there a project to save at least part of the Aral Sea?
A: Yes, there is a project to save at least part of northern part of the Aral Sea. For this purpose, a dam was built in 1990 to stop water running off.
Q: Was Rebirth Island contaminated with biological weapons until 1993?
A: Yes, Rebirth Island had been used for testing biological weapons until 1993 and was contaminated with anthrax, plague and tularemia.
Q: When did Rebirth Island become connected to mainland?
A: In 2000/2001 Rebirth island joined mainland and became connected.
Q:What happened in 2005 regarding international funding for saving part of northern sea ? A:In 2005 ,a dam broke which was rebuilt with international funding .
